The present invention broadly relates to laparoscopic surgical instruments. More particularly, the invention relates to disposable surgical instruments which include disposable end effectors such as cutters, graspers, and dissectors which are useful in a laparoscopy procedure.
The laparoscopy procedure has recently become a widely practiced surgical procedure. A laparoscopy procedure typically involves incising through the navel and through the abdominal wall for viewing and/or operating on the ovaries, uterus, gall bladder, bowels, appendix, although more recently, incisions and insertion of trocar tubes have been made in different areas of the abdomen and even in the chest cavity. Typically, trocars are utilized for creating the incisions. Trocar tubes are left in place in the abdominal wall so that laparoscopic surgical tools may be inserted through the tube. A camera or magnifying lens is often inserted through the largest diameter trocar tube (e.g. 10 mm diameter) which is generally located at the navel incision, while a cutter, dissector, or other surgical instrument is inserted through a similarly sized or smaller diameter trocar tube (e.g. 5 mm diameter) for purposes of manipulating and/or cutting the internal organ. Sometimes it is desirable to have several trocar tubes in place at once in order to receive several surgical instruments. In this manner, organ or tissue may be grasped with one surgical instrument, and simultaneously may be cut or stitched with another surgical instrument; all under view of the surgeon via the camera in place in the navel trocar tube.
Previous to the present invention, laparoscopic tools have utilized connecting mechanisms for imparting pivotal motion to the manipulating members of the end effectors. These tools, however, have utilized either single pivot mechanisms specifically designed to avoid protrusions outside of the outline of the laparoscopic tool so as to avoid any inadvertent contact with tissue of a patient, or double pivot mechanisms such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,895,636 to Schmidt where the manipulating members are directly actuated by the axial movement of a common reciprocating member. While such tools have functioned adequately for many of their intended purposes, these laparoscopic tools have not enabled the desired amount of gripping or cutting force important in the manipulation of large vessels or organs, such as might be required in procedures involving, e.g., intestinal organs.